How Much is a Coach Worth?

Jon Gruden was just signed to the longest contract ever offered to a Head Coach. 10 years, $100M. The sports world is buzzing right now. I’ve seen both sides expressed rather vehemently on social media. Some people are loving it, some are shocked, most of us are merely intrigued.

Let’s take a look, as there is some history here. As most of you know, Gruden has coached the Raiders before. But in 2003, the Buccaneers were desperate for a head coach. So they traded (yes, traded) two 1st round picks, two 2nd round picks, and $8M for Jon Gruden to become their head coach. That seems steep, but they won a Super Bowl in his first year. They won it against the team that traded him.

Gruden has been out of coaching for about a decade now though. We all know his insights are among the best. We know that he knows the game. But how much has changed from a sideline point of view since he was on the sidelines? Will this prove to be a good move on the Raiders’ part by replacing Del Rio with Gruden? Time will tell.

Jack Del Rio proved he could coach. Yes, he was 6-10 this season, but with a team that saw more than their fair share of injuries. I feel that if they didn’t think they could get Gruden, they would’ve stuck with Del Rio. But that’s just my opinion.

Jon Gruden has won a Super Bowl as a head coach. But his overall record is 95-81, a .540 winning percentage. He is 5-4 in the post season. This doesn’t exactly scream $100M to me, although numbers are sometimes misleading. As the Raiders prepare to move to Las Vegas, it looks like they plan on putting on a show worthy of the best ones on the Strip. I like Gruden, I hope he succeeds. But the pressure is on with the stakes that high. Stay tuned and enjoy this ride.